Close to the Heart (Adventures in 'Baby'-Wearing)
by Trinity Everett
Summary: She just wants to get out of the house and make it in time to hear her husband read part of his newest novel to a crowd that adores him (though not nearly as much as the three of them do), but – yet again – they're running late. - A Maritari-verse story for CastleFanficMonday
**Close to the Heart
**

A **Maritari-verse** (Chapters 1, 3, and 5) Ficlet for CastleFanficMonday.

 _Maritari-verse: Before making it big, Kate and Rick met in the library, fell in love, and started their journey in life together. It may not be necessary to read the first three installments, but this may make more sense if you do. :)_

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Kate Rodgers has long-since accepted that she will never be on time to anything ever again, but just once it would be nice to be surprised.

Before she had children, she was one of the most punctual people she knew. Classes, meetings, dates; she was always there before she needed to be. When she found out she was pregnant with her daughter, she had done her best to add cushion to her schedule to accommodate the extra time it took to do even the most simple of errands with a large belly and then later a baby in her arms. Said cushion had been enough to get them through her final semesters of college, help her balance her family and training at the academy, and keep her on time during her first year on the police force.

Then her son arrived, and no amount of planning, scheduling, or even finger crossing has been able to get them where they need to be when they need to be there.

When they're lucky, she manages to lose only a few minutes. When they're not, a part of her always considers saying forget it and taking both Avery and Lucas to the park instead. In doing that, she's able to avoid the judgment that radiates from everyone when she bursts into a room half an hour late, holding the hand of her four year old and cuddling her eight week old close to her heart.

She can't bail today. She doesn't _want_ to do that today.

She just wants to get out of the house and make it in time to hear her husband read part of his newest novel to a crowd that adores him (though not nearly as much as the three of them do), but – yet again – they're running late.

"Avery, are your shoes on?" she calls, turning back to the red-faced infant in front of her. "I know, baby, you didn't want me to wake you up. Especially not to change your diaper. I know. Just hang in there for another minute and everything will be fine. You can go back to sleep while we walk to see Daddy. How's that?"

It doesn't quite mollify her son, but at least his expressive blue eyes lose the shimmer of tears. She hates it when he cries - she hates it when either of her children cry, she always has. Their pitiful bleats never fail to break her apart inside, and she finds herself eager to give them anything to make them happy once more. Even if it means sacrificing sleep, sanity, or her own comfort.

Rick is absolutely right when he tells her she's the softie. She may be Big Bad Officer Beckett at work, but at home, she is wrapped around her babies' little fingers.

"Okay," she hums, fastening the fresh diaper around Lucas and snapping his onesie back into place. A moment later, she wiggles a pair of jeans up his legs and they both breathe a sigh of relief. "There we go. See, sweetheart? It's not so bad. Let's go see if your big sister is ready."

She isn't. Kate already knows that based solely on her daughter's silence. Avery is wonderful, creative, and sweet, but there are times when she has to be nudged and reminded to stay on task.

Today is one of those days.

Grabbing the baby sling, Kate pulls the fabric over her head and gets Lucas settled. She can wear him while she wrangles her firstborn. And if nothing else, maybe being tucked against her breast will soothe away the rest of Lucas's frustration at being awoken early from his nap.

"Avery?" She calls again, stepping out of the nursery.

"Ya mommy?"

Oh good, a response this time. She must be done with whatever mischief she was making.

"We're going to be late to Daddy's reading. Did you put your shoes on?"

There's a thump and a quiet scuffle before Avery skids out of her bedroom, her little feet enclosed in the jellies Martha had presented to her last month.

"Uh huh! I'm weady," her daughter puffs, bounding halfway down the hall.

And she is. She is clothed, and her hair is still in the pigtails at the base of her skull that Rick had given her earlier, she's even wearing shoes. Everything is perfect, except for one important detail.

Avery is wearing the spare baby sling.

With the cat inside.

If they had about ten more minutes, it would be adorable, but she can feel the trickle of sweat running down her back at the prospect of walking into her own husband's event and only catching the end of it. They do not have time to play right now.

Still, she has to smother a laugh as she steps forward. "Avery, we can't take Zoey with us. There are no kitties allowed in the bookstore."

"S'not a kitty. S'my baby." Avery punctuates the declaration with a noisy kiss to the cat's fur. The cat squirms, sending a put out look in Kate's direction.

"Not today, honey. Come on, let Zoey go so we can see Daddy."

Ever the stubborn one, her daughter shakes her head, wrapping her arms a little bit tighter around her feline bundle. Pushing her frustration aside, Kate tries a different approach, a gentler approach. Less beat cop, more mommy.

Lifting a hand, she brushes Avery's bangs off her forehead, waiting until she has her daughter's eyes to speak,

"Zoey's an indoor kitty, remember? She doesn't know what to do outside with all the noises, the smells, and the people. And if she jumps out of the sling and runs away, that'll make everybody scared, won't it?"

Avery nods finally, looking up at Kate with wide hazel eyes. "Uh huh."

"Uh huh," she murmurs, reaching into the sling to ease the cat out of Avery's hold. "So to make sure nobody ends up sad, or scared, or the subject of a city-wide kitty hunt, let's let Zoey stay home. You can take a different baby instead. How does that sound?"

Gingerly, Kate releases Zoey to the floor. The cat skirts down the hall without looking back. She'll hide downstairs in Rick's office, no doubt; it has been her favorite spot since the day they brought her home.

Avery slumps, resting her head against her mother's hip. Cupping the back of her neck, Kate hums. "Who do you want to bring with us, baby?"

"Katie."

"Okay, Katie it is." Kate leads Avery back into her bedroom, helping her load the doll with her name into the fabric wrap and dropping a kiss on her nose when they finish. Going from being an only child to a big sister has been an adjustment, but they seem to be managing with just a little bit of effort.

She hopes they are managing, at least.

"Ready?" she asks, looking between her babies. Her son has already fallen asleep against her, content to stay close, and she returns her focus to her eldest to check for signs of distress.

Her daughter nods, echoing the kiss Kate dusts to Luc's head on her own doll.

"Weady."

Kate exhales, offering Avery her hand. "Kay, sunshine, let's go show Daddy how proud we are."

Avery's fingers curl around hers. "So pwoud!"

"That's right."

It still takes almost twenty minutes to make it out of the house, but once they're safely navigating the sidewalk, Kate fishes her phone out of her back pocket and shoots a text to her husband.

 _On our way finally. Ran into a couple snags, but we will be there._

He shouldn't answer, but he does just moments after she decides to herd Avery into a cab to eat up at least _some_ of the distance between the loft and the bookstore.

 _She tried to bring the cat again, didn't she?_

Kate laughs, pulling her daughter close and dropping a kiss into her hair. She is something, her Avery. She's unexpected, unpredictable, but always worth it.

"How many times have you tried to bring Zoey with you, baby?"

One thin shoulder lifts. "Jussa few."

Just a few, of course.

It really is a good thing Zoey adores them.

They're late – what else is new? – and it's too crowded for them to sit, but she's more than content to lean against the back wall with an arm around each of her children instead of pushing her way through to the front.

Rick lights up as soon as he spots them, but he doesn't stutter or falter in his reading. He's a natural at this, at speaking to the crowd and sharing his passion with everyone watching him, and it just makes her love him even more.

Even if he does let their little girl wear the cat around the house.

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Happy #CastleFanficMonday! Thank you for reading!


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